Matthew 8

Matthew 8: The Favor of God Paraphrase

Jesus Heals a Man with Leprosy

¹ When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed Him.

² A man with leprosy came and knelt before Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean!”

³ Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” Immediately, the leprosy was cleansed.

⁴ Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. Instead, go and show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”*

Jesus Heals a Roman Centurion’s Servant

⁵ When Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him,

⁶ “Lord, my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.”

⁷ Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?”

⁸ The centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have You come under my roof. Just say the word, and my servant will be healed.

⁹ For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell one to ‘Go,’ and he goes; and another to ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

¹⁰ When Jesus heard this, He was amazed and said to those following Him, “Truly, I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.

¹¹ I say to you that many will come from the east and the west and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.

¹² But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

¹³ Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment.*

Jesus Heals Many

¹⁴ When Jesus entered Peter’s house, He saw Peter’s mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever.

¹⁵ He touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve Him.

¹⁶ That evening, many who were demon-possessed were brought to Him, and He drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.

¹⁷ This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases.”*

The Cost of Following Jesus

¹⁸ When Jesus saw the crowd around Him, He gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake.

¹⁹ Then a teacher of the law came to Him and said, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.”

²⁰ Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”

²¹ Another disciple said to Him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

²² But Jesus told him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”*

Jesus Calms the Storm

²³ Then He got into the boat, and His disciples followed Him.

²⁴ Suddenly, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping.

²⁵ The disciples went and woke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”

²⁶ He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.

²⁷ The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey Him!”

Jesus Restores Two Demon-Possessed Men

²⁸ When He arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met Him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way.

²⁹ “What do you want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have You come here to torture us before the appointed time?”

³⁰ Some distance from them, a large herd of pigs was feeding.

³¹ The demons begged Jesus, “If You drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”

³² He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water.

³³ Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town, and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men.

³⁴ Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, they pleaded with Him to leave their region.*

Footnotes:

1.Leprosy (Greek: λέπρα, lepra): A term used in ancient times for various skin diseases, but it symbolized uncleanness. Jesus healing this man demonstrates His authority over both physical ailments and ritual impurity.

2.Roman Centurion (Greek: ἑκατόνταρχος, hekatontarchos): This military officer commanded 100 soldiers. The centurion’s faith in Jesus’ power and authority stands as a model of trust.

3.“Say the word” (Greek: εἰπὲ λόγῳ, eipe logō): The centurion recognized Jesus’ divine authority, believing that even a command from a distance could heal his servant.

4.Peter’s Mother-in-Law (Greek: πενθερά, penthera): In ancient Jewish culture, hospitality was highly valued, and her immediate service after healing reflects both gratitude and cultural norms.

5.“No place to lay His head” (Greek: οὐκ ἔχει ποῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν κλίνῃ, ouk echei pou tēn kephalēn klinē): A metaphor illustrating Jesus’ mission-driven life, without earthly security or comfort.

6.“Let the dead bury their own dead” (Greek: ἄφες τοὺς νεκροὺς θάψαι τοὺς ἑαυτῶν νεκρούς, aphes tous nekrous thapsai tous heautōn nekrous): This radical statement emphasizes the urgency of following Jesus, placing discipleship above social or familial obligations.

7.“Gadarenes” (Greek: Γαδαρηνῶν, Gadarenōn): Refers to the region of Gadara, a primarily Gentile area, where the herd of pigs was common, highlighting the cultural and religious differences from Jewish communities.